Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Wednesday reacted to a report claiming bungling in identifying the bodies of Britons killed in the crash of Air India flight 171 in Ahmedabad. External affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal asserted that all mortal remains were handled with utmost “professionalism”.
The crash of a Boeing 787 in Ahmedabad on June 12 claimed the lives of all but one of the 242 passengers on board, along with 19 people on the ground. Among the deceased were 52 British nationals. The aircraft lost power shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad en route to London and crashed soon thereafter.
Earlier, Britain’s Daily Mail reported that the remains of two British victims were mistakenly identified before being repatriated to the UK.
Reacting to this claim, MEA spokesperson said, “We have seen the report and have been working closely with the UK side from the moment these concerns and issues were brought to our attention.”
Our response to media queries regarding a report in the Daily Mail on the Air India crash
https://t.co/pTWIIMSBhi pic.twitter.com/IP9QgLNuz7
— Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) July 23, 2025
“In the wake of the tragic crash, the concerned authorities had carried out identification of victims as per established protocols and technical requirements. All mortal remains were handled with utmost professionalism and with due regard for the dignity of the deceased,” he added.